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Are you ready for a little photo fun? I recently came across this image in our collection. Can you guess what this strange contraption was used for? Post your best guesses in the comment section below.
I will even give you a hint. Nebraska photographer Solomon Butcher took this photograph in Kearney, Nebraska in about 1907.
I can’t wait to see your responses. Good luck!
Karen Keehr
Curator of Photographs
To clean grain?
Cathy, that’s a great guess, but not quite right. Keep trying.
I would say a amusement ride?
Is everyone ready for the answer? This unusual contraption is a gas powered carpet cleaner. Before vacuum cleaners were common household appliances, you could take you rugs here to have the dirt beaten out of them.